Spring locking especially for ski bindings



April 18, 1967 T. G. SMOLKA ETAL SPRING LOCKING ESPECIALLY FOR SK'l BTNDTNGS 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed March 16, 1964 April 18, 1967 T. G. SMOLKA ETAL 3, ,5

SPRING LOCKING ESPECIALLY FOR SKI BINDTNGS 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed March 16, 1964 United States Patent & Co., a firm Mar. 16, 1964, Ser. No. 351,930

Filed Claims priority, application Austria, Apr. 30, 1963, A 3,521/63 4 Claims. (Cl. 280-1135) The present invention refers to a spring locking especially for ski bindings.

It is one object of the present invention to provide spring locking especially for ski bindings, wherein catches are provided at different heights with respect to an adjusting member being gradually adjustable and lockable for the generation of different spring tensions for the locking.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a spring locking used with a safety ski binding.

With these and other objects in view which will become apparent in the following detailed description, the present invention will be clearly understood in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIGURE 1 is an elevation, partly in section, of a spring locking;

FIG. 2 is an axial section of the spring locking shown in FIG. 1, but in a plane perpendicular to the plane of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an elevation, partly in section, of another embodiment of the spring locking; and

FIG. 4 is an elevation of a spring locking applied to a safety ski binding.

Referring now to the drawings, and in particular to the embodiment according to FIGS. 1 and 2, a bolt 10 is movable in axial direction in a housing 5 and a slide plate 16 is provided with areal catches 1, 2 and 3. The bolt has an extension 17 at its lower end. By the difierent settings of the slide plate 16, it is possible to have the extension 17 in engagement either with the area 1 or the area 2 or the area 3, so that then different tensions of a spring 8, received in the hollow bolt, are procured. The spring 8 is effective upon a locking member or a clamping member.

Referring now again to the drawings and in particular to FIG. 3, a construction where, similar to FIGS. 1 and 2, a slide 16' is displaced, which slide 16' by the areal catches 2, 3 and 4, permits adjustment of the tension of a spring 8', inserted in a hollow bolt 10'. In this embodiment an extension 17' is arranged on the bolt 10 to engage the respective areal catches 2', and 4'.

The above mentioned spring locking is especially advantageous for safety ski bindings. It appears that the binding might then be very doubtful. According to the present invention three or four adjusting positions only are provided; for instance setting up a stronger spring tension might be proposed for good skiers and the setting up of a lower spring tension might be proposed for a bad According to this construction the skier has only the possibility, to set up certain given tensions of the spring 8 suiting all useful conditions.

In FIG. 4 a safety heel clamp disclosed in Patent No. 3,125,349 is shown which clamp, releases the ski boot if an overload occurs. Between a spur 25 and a clamp down device 26 the heel of the ski boot is fixed. A paddock 27 is rigidly connected to the clamp down device 26. The lower end of the paddock 27 is pivoted at 28 to an arm 29, the front part of which carries the spur 25. The end at the right hand side of the arm 29 is supported by a casing 5 at 30. A guide arm 31 is likewise supported by the casing 5 by means of the pivot 32, and is connected by means of the pivot 33 to the paddock 27. The cranked lever 34 too, is pivoted to the paddock 27 by means of the pivot 32. The paddock 27 carries a roller 35 (:0- operating with a nose 36 of the shorter arm of the cranked lever 34. The longer arm of the cranked lever 34 is loaded with the spring 8. The spring lock corresponds to the embodiment shown in the FIGS. 1 and 2, which embodiment has already been described above. If an overload occurs the roller 35 lifts the cranked lever 34 counter clockwise against the tension of the spring 8. The arm 29 to which the roller 35 is attached, might then be pivoted about the center in upward direction, whereby the paddock 27 is taken along. The paddock 27 is pivoted about the center 32 by way of the guide arm 31. If an opening of the safety heel clamp is desired voluntarily the release lever 37 has to be pivoted in clockwise direction about the center or pivot 30.

The present invention is not limited to the embodiments disclosed in the drawings. Thus there might be elevations at the curved track instead of recesses and the nose or pin might be provided with a recess into which the elevations snap in. However, stepped adjustable spring locks might not only be used with ski bindings but in all places The present invention is, of course, not limited to the use of three or four catches. According to the construetive and suitable conditions any number of catches might be used. For the special utilisation for locking ski bindings, as shown by example, two to eight catches are generally sufiicient.

While we have disclosed several embodiments of the present invention, it is to be understood that these embodiments are given by example only and not in a limiting sense, the scope present invention being determined by the objects and the claims.

We claim:

1. A spring locking, especially for ski bindings, comprising a housing,

a hollow bolt having an extension and axially, but nonrotatably movable in said housing,

a slide plate having a plurality of areal catches and slidably mounted in said housing,

said extension of said hollow bolt selectively engaging one of said areal catches depending upon the sliding position of said slide plate,

a spring means disposed in and engaging with one end said hollow bolt and tending to urge said bolt and, thereby, said extension toward said one of said areal catches, and

a locking means engaging the other end of said spring means, in order to provide diiferent tensions of said spring means against said locking means.

3. The spring looking, as set forth in claim 1, wherein 5 said slide plate surrounds and moves along said hollow bolt.

4. The spring locking, as set forth in claim 1, wherein said slide plate moves along said housing.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,162,031 6/1939 Reavill 29274 8/1954 VOreCh 74-527 4/ 1958 Golemon 292-75 3/1964 Schweizer T280-11.35 8/1965 Smolka et a1 280-1l.35

FOREIGN PATENTS 11/1962 Canada. 11/1960 France. 12/1962 France.

BEN] AM IN HERSH, Primary Examiner.

MILTON SMITH, Examiner. 

1. A SPRING LOCKING, ESPECIALLY FOR SKI BINDINGS, COMPRISING A HOUSING, A HOLLOW BOLT HAVING AN EXTENSION AND AXIALLY, BUT NONROTATABLY MOVABLE IN SAID HOUSING, A SLIDE PLATE HAVING A PLURALITY OF AREAL CATCHES AND SLIDABLY MOUNTED IN SAID HOUSING, SAID EXTENSION OF SAID HOLLOW BOLT SELECTIVELY ENGAGING ONE OF SAID AREAL CATCHES DEPENDING UPON THE SLIDING POSITION OF SAID SLIDE PLATE, A SPRING MEANS DISPOSED IN AND ENGAGING WITH ONE END SAID HOLLOW BOLT AND TENDING TO URGE SAID BOLT AND, THEREBY, SAID EXTENSION TOWARD SAID ONE OF SAID AREAL CATCHES, AND A LOCKING MEANS ENGAGING THE OTHER END OF SAID SPRING MEANS, IN ORDER TO PROVIDE DIFFERENT TENSIONS OF SAID SPRING MEANS AGAINST SAID LOCKING MEANS. 